July Genreflecting: Science-Fiction: The Details

Based on the Collins English Dictionary, a subgenre is "a category that is a subdivision of a larger genre." (Source) Science-fiction probably has the largest collection of subgenres that, honestly, I didn't even consider under science-fiction. My brain has always been stuck in the aliens and technology vein, but there is a lot more to science-fiction than just that. What's really important in science-fiction is "their appreciation of the moral and philosophical implications of either the created world or the characters' roles in that world. These books also tend to stretch the imagination and scientific merit of the elements of the story." That being said there are several common subgenres that we can explore. I tend to read on a few of these and I'm pretty sure that my longtime readers can pick them out easily. :)

• Adventure: These books are usually action-packed and involve some sort of campaign against an opposing force. The main character is oftentimes the hero and almost always our narrator. Probably the most famous series in this subgenre is the Ender series by Orson Scott Card.
• Hard science-fiction: These books are what always pop into my mind when I hear science-fiction because science and technology are the focal points. The actual subject matter can vary from genetic engineering to space exploration to cyborgs. While normally you can suspend your imagination with science-fiction books, this specific type is given better credibility and readability if they are believable.
• Humorous: As implied by the name, these books have an element of levity that drives laughter. Whether it's due to strange characters, unique situations, or satire, these books are very entertaining. Obviously the Hitchhiker's series by Douglas Adams is a popular favorite.
• Aliens/supernatural powers: While these don't necessarily go hand in hand, I figured since they both dealt with the "other" that they could be easily combined. Aliens in science-fiction allow for a plethora of interpretation. They can be hostile or docile and they can be invaders or the invaded. Either way, there is ample room for exploration. Supernatural powers can also be very open as they can be engineered or accidentally triggered or simply be a normal part of the book's population. Lots of room to go any multiple directions.
• Utopia/dystopia/post-apocalyptic: Imagine paradise. Now imagine what happens with paradise doesn't go as planned. Now imagine what happens when the world as you know it ceases to function or exist. There you have the beginnings of these three types of  books. They kind of all go together because it doesn't necessarily matter when they take place, what matters is how the people in the book cope with what they are facing or trying to create. These books have seen a huge uptick in numbers since the explosive popularity of The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins.

There are just as many themes that emerge in these subgenres, but I don't think they can stand on their own without the support from one of these aforementioned groupings. What I love most about these types of books is their open availability to be transferred to film. Now, before you start yelling at your screens or throwing rotten tomatoes, understand this: I try to keep my book-based understanding and my movie-viewing experiences separate. Too many times have I had one or the other ruined for me because of how the other treated it. Now I simply enjoy (or enjoy mocking) each one respectively, but 9/10 times I will read the book over seeing the movie. Check out this list of upcoming book to movie adaptations!

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (#2) November 22, 2013

Ender's Game November 1, 2013

The Maze Runner February 14, 2014

Divergent March 21, 2014

And those are just the ones we know of so far! Give me a shout out in the comments if you know of more!

Be sure to check back next week when I review the classic The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.

Patricia's Particularity's Halloween Bash: How KatnissEverdeen would celebrate Halloween & GIVEAWAY!

I'm proud to say that I am fortunate enough to participate in Patricia's Particularity's Halloween Bash. She'll be hosting giveaways & guest posts throughout the month of October. Be sure to check out the schedule of spooktacular fun!

I chose to explore how our favorite Hunger Games tribute would celebrate Halloween in her world. I'll be describing how I think she would participate in the Halloween festivities before we meet her in The Hunger Games.

Katniss Everdeen, our 16 year old heroine, will think that she has outgrown the kiddie faux-holiday that is Halloween, but will be obligated to take her little sister Prim around the neighborhood to collect their meager gifts. Over the years, more and more houses have stopped leaving their lights on to let the kids know that there are treats available. Even more kids have stopped going out because their families simply can't afford the luxury of a costume. Luckily Katniss & Prim's mother is a miracle worker & pulls together a simple, yet cute owl costume for Prim to wear made from old clothing scraps.

As they get ready to head out, Prim decides that Katniss needs to dress up too. Sure to please the young one, Katniss grabs a few bags of herbs from her mom's storage area to tie around her belt. When she returns announcing she's read to go, Prim exclaims that Katniss still isn't dressed. Katniss is sure to inform her that she is dressed as an apothecary, complete with medicinal herbs.

Gale shows up then to escort them around the neighborhood. There's really not much to see in The Seam since all the families here are coal miners, but there are a few houses where people are generous enough to spare an apple or slice of bread. The real score is in town at the merchant families' houses. While no one really has an easy life in District 12 (one of the farthest districts from The Capitol) the merchants seem to be doing better than everyone else because they have an actual product to sell. The miners just get what they can based on the hours in their shifts.

Prim starts to get quote excited to see all the other kids running around giddy & hyper because it's one of the few times she gets to interact in such a jovial manner. Things are quite regimented in the districts with lots of runs that must be followed. Prim enjoys just getting to be a kid. While everyone thinks she is oblivious to what's really going on around her, she knows that Katniss is doing a lot more than she should have to in order to provide for the family. Prim just wishes she could be more like her big sister.

As they wander the streets, moving from house to house, they come upon the Mellark family bakery. Despite having beat her son when he gave away their bread to a starving family, Mrs. Mellark is handing out warm sweet rolls to all the children stopping by. They smell divine & Katniss can't help but think back to the night that Mrs. Mellark's son Peeta saved Katniss's family by giving her some bread. Even now she looks around for him & finds him hard at work inside the bakery making the next batch of sweet rolls. Each of them takes a roll & thanks Mrs. Mellark right before the announcement is made that the curfew has not been extended & all citizens should return to their homes.

Gale walks the girls back to their mother thinking about how this wasn't the "huge waste of time" that Katniss had predicted. Actually, he rather enjoyed the respite from the daily grind of hunting, foraging & trading at the Hob. It was nice to think about what it will be like when he & Katniss get to walk their own children around the district.

So how about it folks? Do you think I hit the nail on the head with that dream? I sure hope so. It was a lot of fun to imagine myself as Katniss & to think about her emotions in such a serious way. I don't do much fiction writing, but after this I may start to think about taking it up as a hobby. There are a few stories I have started over the years (from English & Creative Writing classes), but nothing that I've thought about it years.

Now on to the real reason you might have stopped by. :D There will be 4 winners in this contest.

Grand Prize:
A Hunger Games wordle t-shirt from ParamountPacific on etsy.com
It comes in sizes Small to XL

Three runners up win:
Hunger Games bookmarks from sotheysay on etsy.com

To enter, go to Patricia's Particularity's Halloween Bash page. There are several giveaways going on, so be sure to enter as many as you'd like!!

Waiting on Wednesday: Mockingjay (Hunger Games, #3)

Waiting on Wednesday recognizes that we as bookies pine for books. This post is about what I am impatiently waiting for right now. It was started by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

This book really needs no introduction from me, but I am ECSTATIC for the August 24th release of Mockingjay (the third and FINAL installment) by Suzanne Collins. Obviously MAJOR SPOILERS ahead for those who haven't read the other two books yet. If you want to read my thoughts, they can be found here: The Hunger Games & Catching Fire.

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she’s made it out of the bloody arena alive, she’s still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what’s worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss’s family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins’s groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to be one of the most talked about books of the year.

From Goodreads

I mean WOW. Honestly, I'm kind of speechless after that kind of a set-up. The first two novels in the series were incredibly powerful and wrought with emotion & action. This one promises to follow in its predecessors' footsteps. Unfortunately for all us book reviewers, Scholastic has decided to forgo making any ARCs for general distribution. We will all have to wait patiently until the release date. While I am not a huge promoter of fansites in general, I must say that mockingjay.net does seem to be on the right track with their content, information, and layout. Check them out in order to satiate your Hunger Games needs until the release.

What are you waiting on this week?

Cover Alert ~ Hunger Games 3!!

Isn't it gorgeous?!!? It's official folks, I am now absolutely in love with this series's covers! Hope you enjoy it!

P.S. I had been skeptical of the worthiness of Twitter, until I found this on there just now. It really is a great instant network. Please follow me to find out up-to-date info as I find it!!

You can win the 1st, 2nd or 3rd book of the Hunger Games trilogy!

You read that right. VVB32 is having an amazing contest where you can win any of the 3. Head on over and see what to do!

It's the 5th of November

I can't believe I almost forgot! In case you didn't know, there is an old saying that comes around once a year and it goes like this:

Remember, remember the Fifth of November,

The Gunpowder Treason and Plot,

I know of no reason

Why the Gunpowder Treason

Should ever be forgot.

It is on this day in 1605 that Guy Fawkes, along with other Catholic conspirators, attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament with the King and other primary figures in it. They obviously did not succeed and were caught, tortured, and executed.

The foiled plot is traditionally celebrated with bonfires and fireworks in the United Kingdom and some of their former colonies. The "holiday" found a new following in 2005 with the release of a film adaption of the graphic novel V for Vendetta by Alan Moore and David Lloyd. The main character in the story follows in Guy Fawkes' footsteps, even wearing a Guy Fawkes mask, and attempts to blow up the Houses of Parliament. A wonderful movie for those who enjoy books like The Hunger Games and Winter's End. So enjoy the day!

Winter's End by Jean-Claude Mourlevat

Milena, Bartolomeo (Bart), Helen, and Milos live in a dystopian future where, after a bloody rebellion resulted in the creation of the centralized government of the Phalange, they were imprisoned as children in neighboring boarding schools. Due to this unfortunate state, the teens have never really been exposed to the opposite sex.

That is until Helen and Milena happen to run into Bart and Milos on the bridge into town. The teens exchange in formation, to facilitate unauthorized letter-writing, and then move on. Only fate has other plans for Bart and Milena.

All four teens manage to escape from their boarding schools and begin a whirlwind journey across mountains, running from pursuers, and making friends in unlikely places. Not everything is as well as it seems though. There is an uprising boiling just under the surface, and these teens will make all the difference in that movement. Who will remain standing when the floodgates open?

A truly evocative story, Winter's End is sure to garner fans from the Hunger Games crowd. The characters feel so familiar and the story is filled with fantastical contortions of the human race. I received this book from Candlewick Press and couldn't be more happy that they graced me with this gift. While I know I seem to have a lot of glowing reviews of books, this one easily stands out among the many that I have read as a sleeper hit. With its inventive characters and plausible plot, one could almost believe that this was a true story. Almost. Give it a shot and pick it up on November 10th!

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

So I know I am a little farther behind then everyone else, but I decided to be patient like a good girl and wait for my copy to come into the library. Let me tell you, it was well worth the wait.

Winning the Hunger Games was nothing like Katniss thought it would be. Instead of being relieved to be home, she is tormented not only by the nightmares about the games, but by the way her life is progressing.

Her berry trick caused such a raucous around the country of Panem, that President Snow is worried about rebellions and uprisings as her actions were seen as a direct threat to the control exerted by the Capitol.

Her relationship with Gale seems irreparably damaged and her "relationship" with Peeta is strained when the cameras are gone. Her mother and Prim are safe at home with her, but she can't seem to shake this feeling that something still isn't right.

When the 75th Hunger Games theme, the 3rd Quarter Quell, is announced everyone is shocked to find that the surviving victors are going back into the arena. Who will come out on top? What will happen with Katniss and Peeta's relationship? It has saved them once, but there are no guarantees now.

A phenomenal sequel to the highly acclaimed Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins has quickly returned and immersed us in the world of Panem with her compelling storyline and incredible characters. The scenes are described in such a way that I feel I can actually see what's going on in the book. Check out my review for the Hunger Games and keep your eyes posted for the third installment in the trilogy that's due out sometime in 2010!

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I picked this book up on the suggestion of a friend and I cannot thank her enough! This book was absolutely stellar! There's suspense, drama, and a creatively designed dystopic world! The characters have depth and are very engaging as they race around an arena trying to kill each other!

Before getting ahead of ourselves, some back ground information is necessary. When global warming destroys the United States, the remaining land is divided up between 13 districts. When District 13 decides to fight back at the inordinate amount of control the central government is exerting, they are put down and destroyed. As a reminder of this ill-advised uprising, every year there is a nationally televised gladiator-esque game show pitting two contestants from each district against everyone else in a battle to the death.

Katniss, our 16 year-old volunteer, is a strong, determined heroine. If she can be called that. Her drive to return home forces her to be brutal and harsh, while she is still likable as a character. Her alter-ego Peeta, also from her district, is generous to a fault. The story follows them as they try to escape the other 22 players and learn of the evil that lurks in the government. Do they make it out? Read it and discover the truth!

Note: The sequel to this book is coming out September 1, 2009. Get them both!!

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